Cultural

Whether he uses words, movement, music or images, the 38 year-old African dancer and choreographer, Faustin Linyekula, sheds light on the political aspect of art. His long-suffering homeland, the Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire, formerly the Belgian Congo) lies at the very heart of his art. In Le Cargo, his first solo, the celebrated choreographer returns to the body and to movement as unsurpassed tools for understanding and recording history. How can he use dance to speak of memory and its eradication, the war and the violence suffered by his country, his family and friends? Linyekula has a profound belief in art as an antidote to crisis, as a means of awakening, as a roar of strength, as an incantation banishing despair. And since his dance tells stories of love and darkness, his message remains optimistic: the body is the confirmation of the life which links what we have experienced with what we dream of living—the things we will build in response to the ruins of the past.

Choreographed & danced by Faustin Linyekula
Music: Flamme Kapaya and a group of Obilo percussionistsWorld premiere: Centre national de la danse (Paris), 7 April 2011Production: Studios Kabako, Virginie Dupray
Co-production: Centre national de la danse
With the support of DRAC Ile-de-France